The Board of Studies joins with the rest of the community in wishing all students the best for their exams.

For general information, facts and figures about this year's HSC, please see the newly released 2009 HSC Media Guide.

Course: German Continuers

Date: Monday November 2, 2009, 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM

Candidature: 332 (as at 1 September 2009)

The paper consists of three sections:

Section I - Listening and Responding (25 marks). In this section, students listen and respond to recorded texts in German. Questions are phrased in English for responses in English or German, as specified.

Section II - Reading and Responding (40 marks). This section has two parts. In Part A, students read two texts in German and answer questions phrased in English, for responses in English. In Part B, students read a short text in German and respond to the question in German.

Section III - Writing in German (15 marks). There are two writing tasks - students have a choice of two questions for each writing task.

Read the full 2009 HSC examination timetable.

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The Board of Studies joins with the rest of the community in wishing all students the best for their exams.

For general information, facts and figures about this year's HSC, please see the newly released 2009 HSC Media Guide.

Course: Chinese Beginners

Date: Monday November 2, 2009, 2:00 PM - 4:40 PM

Candidature: 9 (as at 1 September 2009)

The paper consists of three sections:

Section I - Listening (30 marks). In this section, students listen and respond to recorded texts in Chinese. Questions are phrased in English for responses in English.

Section II - Reading and Responding (30 marks) In this section, students read four to five texts in Chinese and answer questions phrased in English, for responses in English.

Section III - Writing in Chinese (15 marks) There are three writing tasks - students have a choice of two questions for the third writing task.

Read the full 2009 HSC examination timetable.

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The Board of Studies joins with the rest of the community in wishing all students the best for their exams.

For general information, facts and figures about this year's HSC, please see the newly released 2009 HSC Media Guide.

Course: Spanish Extension

Date: Monday November 2, 2009, 1:55 PM - 3:55 PM

Candidature: 75 (as at 1 September 2009)

The paper consists of two sections:

Section I - Response to prescribed text (25 marks). This section has two parts. In Part A, students answer a number of short-response questions based on a short extract from the prescribed text. In Part B, students write an original text in Spanish in response to another extract from the prescribed text.

Section II - Writing in Spanish (15 marks) Students have a choice of two questions and write an original text in Spanish.

Read the full 2009 HSC examination timetable.

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The Board of Studies joins with the rest of the community in wishing all students the best for their exams.

For general information, facts and figures about this year's HSC, please see the newly released 2009 HSC Media Guide.

Course: Construction

Date: Monday November 2, 2009, 1:55 PM - 4:00 PM

Candidature: 1961 (as at 1 September 2009)

The paper consists of three sections.

Section I (15 marks) consists of multiple-choice questions answered on a separate machine-scored answer sheet.

Section II (35 marks) consists of short response questions answered in the spaces provided on the question paper.

All questions in Sections I and II are compulsory.

Section III (30 marks) consists of three extended response questions. Students answer two questions, each in a separate writing booklet.

Read the full 2009 HSC examination timetable.

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The Board of Studies joins with the rest of the community in wishing all students the best for their exams.

For general information, facts and figures about this year's HSC, please see the newly released 2009 HSC Media Guide.

Course: Community and Family Studies

Date: Monday November 2, 2009, 1:55 PM - 5:00 PM

Candidature: 5281 (as at 1 September 2009)

The paper consists of two sections.

Section I Core (75 marks) consists of three parts:

Part A (10 marks) - 10 multiple-choice questions answered on a separate machine-scored answer sheet.

Part B (15 marks) - short response questions answered in the spaces provided on the question paper.

Part C (50 marks) - two questions, one on each of the HSC core modules, 'Groups in Context' and 'Parenting and Caring', answered in separate writing booklets.

All questions in Section I are compulsory.

Section II Options (25 marks) consists of three questions, one for each option. Each question may consist of several parts. Students answer one question on the option they have studied. The question is answered in a separate writing booklet.

Read the full 2009 HSC examination timetable.

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The Board of Studies joins with the rest of the community in wishing all students the best for their exams.

For general information, facts and figures about this year's HSC, please see the newly released 2009 HSC Media Guide.

Course: Chemistry

Date: Monday November 2, 2009, 9:25 AM - 12:30 PM

Candidature: 10226 (as at 1 September 2009)

The paper consists of two sections:

Section I Core (75 marks) consists of two parts:

Part A - 15 multiple choice questions (15 marks), answered on a separate machine-scored answer sheet, and Part B - short response questions (60 marks) answered in the spaces provided on the question paper.

All questions in Section I are compulsory.

Section II Options (25 marks) consists of five questions, one for each option. Students answer the question based on the option they have studied. The question is answered in a separate writing booklet.

Read the full 2009 HSC examination timetable.

Test yourself on Chemistry multiple choice questions.

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30 October 2009

On Friday 23 October we provided answers to common questions arising from Section 3 of the 2009 HSC Studies of Religion exam held on 22 October.

We have acknowledged all those who have so far emailed and telephoned the Board, and we are in the process of providing additional, more detailed responses where required.

In the meantime, some further common questions have been identified and are answered below.

Has the Board started looking at students' answers to the exam?

Yes. The Supervisor of Marking and Chief Examiner have already looked at a range of responses. The marking process will begin as it normally would, with the markers being fully briefed and a range of checks and balances in place to manage any unusual responses to the questions.

Read more about how we deal with variations in difficulty in exams.

Read more about the HSC marking process.

Read more about how HSC marks are determined.

What happens if some of the five option questions in Section 3 were easier than others?

The HSC marking process already has a mechanism to deal with this. The Board accepts that in any exams that include both compulsory and optional questions an additional step is needed before the marks are added up. We use a process called 'optional question scaling'. This ensures students are not unfairly advantaged or disadvantaged by choosing an easier or more difficult optional question.

Read more about optional question scaling in part 2 of this description of determining marks.

Were there delays to the start of exams in some schools?

Yes. In fact, every year there are instances where HSC exams have a delayed start for one reason or another. For example, emergency evacuations may be called during reading or writing time; electrical storms may disrupt power and lights; floods may delay students' arrival at school, and, from time to time, there may be a disturbance in the exam room. Unpredictable and unforeseen events will occur and so the Board has standard procedures that minimise impact on students.

A small number of schools reported a delayed start to the 2009 Studies of Religion exam following concerns raised by students during reading time.

Presiding officers report to us when there is a disturbance in an exam. These reports may be relevant to Illness/Misadventure appeals.

Read about How Your HSC Works.

Students, teachers and parents with further questions can use the email address service@bos.nsw.edu.au

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The Board of Studies joins with the rest of the community in wishing all students the best for their exams.

For general information, facts and figures about this year's HSC, please see the newly released 2009 HSC Media Guide.

Course: Personal Development, Health and Physical Education

Date: Friday October 30, 2009, 1:55 PM - 5:00 PM

Candidature: 12898 (as at 1 September 2009)

The paper consists of two sections:

Section I - Core (60 marks) consists of two parts:

Part A - 20 multiple choice questions (20 marks), answered on a separate machine scored answer sheet.

Part B - two questions (40 marks), one on each of the HSC core modules, answered on the question paper.

All questions in Section I are compulsory.

Section II - Options (40 marks) consists of five questions, one for each option. Students answer the question on each of the two options they have studied. The questions are answered in separate writing booklets.

Read the full 2009 HSC examination timetable.

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The Board of Studies joins with the rest of the community in wishing all students the best for their exams.

For general information, facts and figures about this year's HSC, please see the newly released 2009 HSC Media Guide.

Course: English Extension 1

Date: Friday October 30, 2009, 9:25 AM - 11:30 AM

Candidature: 5812 (as at 1 September 2009)

The examination consists of three modules.

Module A: Genre

Module B: Texts and Ways of Thinking

Module C: Language and Values

Students answer two questions from the module they have studied. All questions require an extended response and are of equal value.

Read the full 2009 HSC examination timetable.

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The Board of Studies joins with the rest of the community in wishing all students the best for their exams.

For general information, facts and figures about this year's HSC, please see the newly released 2009 HSC Media Guide.

Course: Business Services

Date: Friday October 30, 2009, 9:25 AM - 11:30 AM

Candidature: 1868 (as at 1 September 2009)

The paper consists of three sections.

Section I (15 marks) consists of 15 multiple-choice questions answered on a separate machine-scored answer sheet.

Section II (35 marks) consists of short response questions answered in the spaces provided on the question paper.

All questions in Sections I and II are compulsory.

Section III (30 marks) consists of three extended response questions. Students answer two questions, each in a separate writing booklet.

Read the full 2009 HSC examination timetable.

Don't miss out! Get your Board news fast and from the source with our easy email news alerts. Just enter your email address in the box on the right, and don't forget to confirm your subscription.